How to Rid a Home of Pantry Moths or Weevils

Bugs in your flour and cornmeal? Suspect pantry moths or weevils. The first line of defense is good housekeeping. Moths and weevils don't like clean surroundings so to protect your pantry you should try to minimize keeping food out that is accessible to these bugs.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Airtight Containers
• Hand Towels
• Dish Soap
• Cannister Vacuum Cleaners
• Kitchen Sponges

1. Check for infestation. Examine all food packages for telltale signs of moth or weevil infestation: Webbing in corners, grains clumped together with sticky secretions, or small holes in containers. Also look for small bugs in the food or little moths flying around the kitchen. If you find them, read on.

2. Clean infested areas. Vacuum cupboards, then thoroughly scrub all shelves with soapy water, paying close attention to cracks and corners. Dry the cleaned area thoroughly. Keep cupboard and food-storage areas dry.

3. Discard infested food.

4. Store food properly. Clean containers with hot, soapy water, then rinse and dry them thoroughly before refilling. Use tightly sealed metal, glass or hard plastic containers to store food; plastic bags are inadequate, as insects can get through them. Keep old and new food separate, and keep infrequently used items in the freezer.

5. Eliminate the pests' food sources (such as improperly stored food) and breeding grounds (such as rodent nests).

Tips & Warnings

• Pantry moth larvae eat a wide assortment of foods, ranging from flour to dried chiles and candy.
• It takes six to eight weeks for the pantry moth to complete its life cycle.
• Do not use pesticides in or around any area where food is prepared or on food itself.

[pattyjoel]

on 10/12/2009 OMG...in every hole (over 30 of them) we found nests of eggs. They would lay the eggs, hatch and escape out the back of our pantry ( a layer existed between the pantry and our wall) and fly out from behind the refrigerator. We cleaned every hole, puttied them in and have pulled out the refrigerator every week for the last three weeks. So far, we are moth free. We have three traps on top of the refrigerator...we have not seen a moth yet. I pray we are moth-free.

[pattyjoel]

on 10/12/2009 I must post this for the good of all mankind who have suffered from this moth problem... we had them for almost a year...we read everything online on how to get rid of them...we cleaned out our pantry multiple times, got rid of our food and set the traps...the traps worked great...however, the traps were constantly filled...meaning we still had a source. We decided to try one more cleaning. We had a high-powered lamp and went looking in the original source of our infestation....the pantry....we found webbing in the bottom drawer...all around the cracks and also in the metal tracts of our drawers. We cleaned it all out and even pulled out the refrigerator and sprayed. We thought we conquered it...but still had a few moths in our traps. Damn... then my husband went to putty in all the preset holes that allowed for shelf adjustment in our pantry. OMG...in every hole (over 30 of th...

[sscallis]

on 10/11/2009 Help..Help....I am seeing little brown weevils flying around in my bedroom....and in my window seal...they are really..really bad...i have sprayed Pesticide day after..day...it kills them...but they just keep showing up.....what on earth can i do....please help me..

Thanks

[acolson]

on 9/25/2009 Now I am not sure what to do. I panicked and took all my food out and sprayed Raid in my pantry. After I go through my food and completely clean my pantry when will it be safe to put my food back in? Also I read that freezing my food to kill the eggs and larva, is that something that should be done? Should I also put my food in sealed containers?

[brybry88]

on 9/7/2009 I'm genuinely grossed out by these moths in my pantry.